"To me, it's going into the Big Ten," Heacock said of the storyline for this game. "It's the first game in the Big Ten. Our guys will get excited about that."

Heacock has been able to beam a bit about his defense. Although OSU had just two returning starters, the Buckeyes have allowed each of their first three opponents just one touchdown.

"The biggest thing is this group is exciting and fun to coach," Heacock said. "They really want to do well. They are open to coaching. They spend a lot of time on the game. It's important to them. They want to be good and do things right. They have made some improvement. They play hard and they practice hard and that gives them a chance to be a good defense."

Heacock said because the defense lacks experience the staff spends more time working on the defense, itself, than scheming for opponents.

"Probably this year, more than ever with this group, we have very little time to think about the team we're facing," Heacock said. "We have to get our guys lined up. We look at Penn State. We look at what they're doing. We look at the statistics. We look at the film. We don't go much beyond that now.

"Our goal has been to improve each game. We are faced with an offense that is loaded with talent. We have to play with a lot of discipline."

Regarding Penn State, Heacock said the Buckeyes are preparing for a lot of different looks.

"We are trying to prepare for everything," he said. "They have a lot of good skill athletes. They use different combinations. We expect them to give us a lot of different looks."

Included in those looks is sophomore wide receiver Derrick Williams, who sometimes lines up at quarterback and also at running back. Heacock was asked if Williams is back to full speed after missing the end of last season with an injury.

"Yes, he really does seem to be back," Heacock said. "They truly have a great stable of athletes. They have guys who can get on the edge and give you a lot of problems. They have an explosive offense that can get the ball downfield."

"He's looked good throwing the football," Heacock said. "He has a really strong arm. He throws the ball downfield and he can throw the deep out. He's a very talented quarterback. In the first three games, he's looked very good."

Heacock said the staff still plans to play multiple players at each position in the front seven.

"I suspect we will continue to play all of them," he said. "As we get into league play, the guys who are performing a little bit better will play a little bit more. That balance may change, but we still want to play as many guys as we can."

One true freshman who has earned playing time is defensive end Robert Rose.

"We think, potentially, he is an outstanding football player," Heacock said. "He fits in with those four. He gives us another dimension. He can play both sides – the end and the Leo. We have two ends and two Leos and then he can swing back and forth. He's strong and very talented. He's going to be a great football player."

Daniels' View

Daniels, a Pennsylvania native, talked about the nature of the OSU-PSU rivalry.

"I think it is getting to be (a rivalry)," Daniels said. "Of course, it is with me because I recruit Pennsylvania. It's big, but it is getting to be much more of a rivalry game than five or six years ago."

Daniels provided his scouting report of the Penn State defense, which had just four returning starters.

"They're young, but typical Penn State," Daniels said. "They are very well coached. They teach technique very well. They're just a young team and one guy will make a mistake then another guy will make a mistake."

PSU had to find four new starters in the secondary.

"As I look at it, it's a young group, especially when you compare to what they've had the last two years," Daniels said. "But I think they will be fine."

Daniels was asked his take on how Penn State was able to contain the OSU offense in last year's 17-10 loss at Penn State.

"They just played really good football," Daniels said. "I know that sounds crazy, but they were just so strong up front and so experienced. They had one young kid, Justin King, who played in the nickel. But other than that they had a lot of experience and a bunch of fifth-year seniors. They knew what they were doing.

"They are probably one of the smarter teams we play. You might get them once on something, but you're not going to get them again. They'll study you and know your route progressions."

To date, Penn State's strong front seven has been stiff against the run.

"We're going to play our game and do what brung us," Daniels said. "We'll have to wait and see how we run the ball. You have to mix it. We're not a team that can come out and throw the ball 50 times a game. But we do want to throw it and pick our times when we want to do it."

Daniels said it is notable that quarterback Troy Smith has gone five straight games without an interception.

"I think it's a big deal because we emphasize no turnovers so much," Daniels said. "As an offensive team, that's probably the first thing we talk about and the last thing we talk about. The thing about Troy – and one of the things that is probably not talked about a lot – he is very careful with the ball.

"He will not throw the ball if there is, in his mind, a chance that somebody will be covered. I'm not saying he doesn't take a chance or that he doesn't anticipate. He does all of those things, but it is very calculated. He's not a kid who will throw a lot of interceptions."

In that regard, Daniels talked about when Smith gained the trust of the coaching staff.

"It was more of a gradual thing than a defining moment," Daniels said. "He grew into it. First and foremost was the thought process that we had to go through as to who was going to be the man. Once we did that, it was like we had to hang with him. Slowly, things started to happen."

Daniels was asked about the lack of running plays by Smith so far this season.

"There were two situations that I know of where he did run, but we got a penalty," he said. "We've had quarterback run plays in the game plan for all three games. We always talk about step up and go or step up and throw. I don't think we've emphasized it any more.

"Right now, he's doing what we want him to do and he's taking care of the ball, so we're happy."

Daniels provided an update on sophomore quarterback Todd Boeckman, who suffered an ankle injury late in the Cincinnati game.

"I didn't think (he's be available), but he's coming along pretty well," Daniels said. "He seems to be a little bit further advanced than they thought."

"Right now, that would be the pecking order," Daniels said. "Those two young kids (Boeckman and Schoenhoft), what we'd like to do, is get them as many reps as possible whenever possible. That's the plan."

Daniels was glad to see Zwick get in the UC game and complete a couple of long passes, one to Ray Small and the other to Brian Hartline.

"I was very happy," he said. "I knew it wouldn't be a whole lot of snaps. When Tress and I talked about it, we said, ‘Let's get him in there and he needs some snaps. He needs to do that.' I thought he did well. I thought he was sharp with everything he did mentally as well as physically. I was happy to see that.

"We had a chance to play Todd and whether we would have a chance to play Robby was going to depend on how many more snaps we had. Then, when Todd turned his ankle, then we had to go with Robby."

Grieving Son

Daniels has undergone treatment for cancer this summer. Reporters asked on Wednesday how his recovery has gone. He revealed that he is fine, but he recently dealt with the death of his mother, Carmella.

"I feel great," he said. "I feel very good. It's been not a real enjoyable week-and-a-half we've gone through here, but health-wise I feel great. I just need to keep on keeping on."

Following the Texas game, Daniels traveled to Pennsylvania to be with his mother before she passed away last week.

"She was a great Italian mom," Daniels said. "Everything that comes to mind with that statement is true of my mom. She was a great lady. She did everything for us. I never even made my bed. She had a great sense of humor. She had a great even temper. She was a good mom and that's the best I could say."

\"To me, it's going into the Big Ten,\" Heacock said of the storyline for this game. \"It's the first game in the Big Ten. Our guys will get excited about that.\"

Heacock has been able to beam a bit about his defense. Although OSU had just two returning starters, the Buckeyes have allowed each of their first three opponents just one touchdown.

\"The biggest thing is this group is exciting and fun to coach,\" Heacock said. \"They really want to do well. They are open to coaching. They spend a lot of time on the game. It's important to them. They want to be good and do things right. They have made some improvement. They play hard and they practice hard and that gives them a chance to be a good defense.\"

Heacock said because the defense lacks experience the staff spends more time working on the defense, itself, than scheming for opponents.

\"Probably this year, more than ever with this group, we have very little time to think about the team we're facing,\" Heacock said. \"We have to get our guys lined up. We look at Penn State. We look at what they're doing. We look at the statistics. We look at the film. We don't go much beyond that now.

\"Our goal has been to improve each game. We are faced with an offense that is loaded with talent. We have to play with a lot of discipline.\"

Regarding Penn State, Heacock said the Buckeyes are preparing for a lot of different looks.

\"We are trying to prepare for everything,\" he said. \"They have a lot of good skill athletes. They use different combinations. We expect them to give us a lot of different looks.\"

Included in those looks is sophomore wide receiver Derrick Williams, who sometimes lines up at quarterback and also at running back. Heacock was asked if Williams is back to full speed after missing the end of last season with an injury.

\"Yes, he really does seem to be back,\" Heacock said. \"They truly have a great stable of athletes. They have guys who can get on the edge and give you a lot of problems. They have an explosive offense that can get the ball downfield.\"

\"He's looked good throwing the football,\" Heacock said. \"He has a really strong arm. He throws the ball downfield and he can throw the deep out. He's a very talented quarterback. In the first three games, he's looked very good.\"

Heacock said the staff still plans to play multiple players at each position in the front seven.

\"I suspect we will continue to play all of them,\" he said. \"As we get into league play, the guys who are performing a little bit better will play a little bit more. That balance may change, but we still want to play as many guys as we can.\"

One true freshman who has earned playing time is defensive end Robert Rose.

\"We think, potentially, he is an outstanding football player,\" Heacock said. \"He fits in with those four. He gives us another dimension. He can play both sides – the end and the Leo. We have two ends and two Leos and then he can swing back and forth. He's strong and very talented. He's going to be a great football player.\"

Daniels, a Pennsylvania native, talked about the nature of the OSU-PSU rivalry.

\"I think it is getting to be (a rivalry),\" Daniels said. \"Of course, it is with me because I recruit Pennsylvania. It's big, but it is getting to be much more of a rivalry game than five or six years ago.\"

Daniels provided his scouting report of the Penn State defense, which had just four returning starters.

\"They're young, but typical Penn State,\" Daniels said. \"They are very well coached. They teach technique very well. They're just a young team and one guy will make a mistake then another guy will make a mistake.\"

PSU had to find four new starters in the secondary.

\"As I look at it, it's a young group, especially when you compare to what they've had the last two years,\" Daniels said. \"But I think they will be fine.\"

Daniels was asked his take on how Penn State was able to contain the OSU offense in last year's 17-10 loss at Penn State.

\"They just played really good football,\" Daniels said. \"I know that sounds crazy, but they were just so strong up front and so experienced. They had one young kid, Justin King, who played in the nickel. But other than that they had a lot of experience and a bunch of fifth-year seniors. They knew what they were doing.

\"They are probably one of the smarter teams we play. You might get them once on something, but you're not going to get them again. They'll study you and know your route progressions.\"

To date, Penn State's strong front seven has been stiff against the run.

\"We're going to play our game and do what brung us,\" Daniels said. \"We'll have to wait and see how we run the ball. You have to mix it. We're not a team that can come out and throw the ball 50 times a game. But we do want to throw it and pick our times when we want to do it.\"

Daniels said it is notable that quarterback Troy Smith has gone five straight games without an interception.

\"I think it's a big deal because we emphasize no turnovers so much,\" Daniels said. \"As an offensive team, that's probably the first thing we talk about and the last thing we talk about. The thing about Troy – and one of the things that is probably not talked about a lot – he is very careful with the ball.

\"He will not throw the ball if there is, in his mind, a chance that somebody will be covered. I'm not saying he doesn't take a chance or that he doesn't anticipate. He does all of those things, but it is very calculated. He's not a kid who will throw a lot of interceptions.\"

In that regard, Daniels talked about when Smith gained the trust of the coaching staff.

\"It was more of a gradual thing than a defining moment,\" Daniels said. \"He grew into it. First and foremost was the thought process that we had to go through as to who was going to be the man. Once we did that, it was like we had to hang with him. Slowly, things started to happen.\"

Daniels was asked about the lack of running plays by Smith so far this season.

\"There were two situations that I know of where he did run, but we got a penalty,\" he said. \"We've had quarterback run plays in the game plan for all three games. We always talk about step up and go or step up and throw. I don't think we've emphasized it any more.

\"Right now, he's doing what we want him to do and he's taking care of the ball, so we're happy.\"

Daniels provided an update on sophomore quarterback Todd Boeckman, who suffered an ankle injury late in the Cincinnati game.

\"I didn't think (he's be available), but he's coming along pretty well,\" Daniels said. \"He seems to be a little bit further advanced than they thought.\"

\"Right now, that would be the pecking order,\" Daniels said. \"Those two young kids (Boeckman and Schoenhoft), what we'd like to do, is get them as many reps as possible whenever possible. That's the plan.\"

Daniels was glad to see Zwick get in the UC game and complete a couple of long passes, one to Ray Small and the other to Brian Hartline.

\"I was very happy,\" he said. \"I knew it wouldn't be a whole lot of snaps. When Tress and I talked about it, we said, ‘Let's get him in there and he needs some snaps. He needs to do that.' I thought he did well. I thought he was sharp with everything he did mentally as well as physically. I was happy to see that.

\"We had a chance to play Todd and whether we would have a chance to play Robby was going to depend on how many more snaps we had. Then, when Todd turned his ankle, then we had to go with Robby.\"

Daniels has undergone treatment for cancer this summer. Reporters asked on Wednesday how his recovery has gone. He revealed that he is fine, but he recently dealt with the death of his mother, Carmella.

\"I feel great,\" he said. \"I feel very good. It's been not a real enjoyable week-and-a-half we've gone through here, but health-wise I feel great. I just need to keep on keeping on.\"

Following the Texas game, Daniels traveled to Pennsylvania to be with his mother before she passed away last week.

\"She was a great Italian mom,\" Daniels said. \"Everything that comes to mind with that statement is true of my mom. She was a great lady. She did everything for us. I never even made my bed. She had a great sense of humor. She had a great even temper. She was a good mom and that's the best I could say.\"